Unspoken by Dee Henderson

If you are the kind of reader who enjoys a bit of romance with your suspense, this is the author for you. I am not a big fan of fiction but her writing is full and she ties off her loose ends and leaves no dangling bits to take away from the story line. The main character suffers from PTSD due to having been kidnapped almost 20 years ago but the focus of the story is the development of romance in the hear and now time line. A bit too much detail was spent on old coins and the details of the coins, but as I like old money I thought that was an expectable tarry of time. it is a long book and took me 3 days to read. It is hard to review it without giving away the plot or outcome of the story. It is well written and a good story line that is strong in details with well rounded solid characters.

The Christmas Candle by Max Lucado

Let me start by saying that Lucado is my favorite author. But now let me also add; but not for his fiction. Lucado is top notch at non fiction inspirational writing and that is his forte. As a fiction writer, I find him less than the best. There are times when it is hard to tell who is talking. The characters are full but the story line is not as well developed as it could be. Susan Boyles starred in the movie version made in the UK. The setting does come to life and it does have a happy ending. I did enjoy the book but felt it could have been better and that is not up to par with Max's normal delivery of awesomness. In a nut shell, every 25 years an angel touches a candle and the candle maker must decide whom to gift that candle to as their prayers offered over the candle will be answered. I understood that the idea was that God answers the prayers, I just did not appreciate the idea that once every 25 years an angel touches a candle to make that candle special. The story line is a little loose in other places as well. The character of the new preacher is a little flat. The candle takes on powers in the end when it lights up an area very large to shine on a young girl and her baby. I did not care for the supernatural element. I can see how many people would really enjoy the story. To be honest, I am not a fan of fiction and that greys my review right off the bat. I received a free copy of this book from the publisher through the Booksneeze in exchange for writing a review. If you think that got the book a favorite review then I would encourage you to read several other reviews as I tend to be brutally honest.

The Compass Bible available at Walmart for 20 dollars with a life time guarantee!!

First off, the bible comes with a life time guarantee!! It looks and feels like soft tooled leather so it rests comfortably in your hands while you read or on your lap without trying to slide off. It is a new translation and is wonderful for those who struggle to understand what the bible is saying; it also includes notes that include cultural, historical, theological, and devotional thoughts about the life during the time the book was written. The maps are wonderful and there is a guide to plan out how to read the bible in a year. The format reminds me of Tim Lahaya's format in his book about how to study the bible. This bible also has introductions to each book, which gives you a good feel for the upcoming book so you go into the book with a better understanding of what to expect that book to be saying. There is an old saying; offer a man a turnip and you feed him once. Teach a man how to garden and he can feed himself for a lifetime. Consider that nothing is more important that bringing someone to Jesus. Many people want to make the journey but find that the bible is too hard to understand and the confusion keeps them from getting to trust God. This bible is literally designed to breach that barrier. If you want to help someone get to know God, this bible is a great place to start. Give them a copy of it because this is a bible that they can read and understand.

The Daniel Cure

This is the disappointing book of the year!! SAVE YOUR MONEY!! Instead try the Hallelujah Diet by Malkmus and The China Study by Dr. Campbell. This book, falls short all the way around, advocating vegetarian only eating, but no raw! Save your money!! The recipe section is some what enticing, for cooked veggies; nothing on the raw side!! I used to work for Indians, all of them were life long vegetarians; one was extremely diabetic...so what does it really cure to eat all veggies? they ate healthy, cooked all from scratch, olive oil only, etc. I cannot express how disappointed I was in this book, it had so much potiential, and I was really looking forward to reading it.

Forgiveness by Matthew West

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for writing a review. However, that does not in anyway ensure a positive review as I tend to be brutal in my assessments of works of literature especially where hope is involved. A poorly written book is somewhat like a beautiful sucker that tastes like paper. Its a false hope so I am more critical of hopeful works than I am of fiction. That being said, West is a wonderful singer and talented song writer. It is no surprise that his book was somewhat thin or short as he gets to his point and moves to the next point of interest. West includes stories from real people and recounts moments of faith in their lives when they stepped out on faith and was rewarded by God for believing and calling upon God to help them through out their struggles. How people have made it past the bitterness of disappointment when others treated them wrong and how god made things better for them. West also accounts stories from his own life that inspired his songs and lifted the crushing spirit of doubt that we all encounter at some point in our lives. He talks about some songs in particular and what he was going through when he wrote those songs, what aspects of his life were impacted by struggles and how his faith pulled his out a slump and how he used his faith to write the songs that propelled his career forward. West always gives God the glory and credit for his success and encourages the reader to focus on God during hard times and keep in prayer and devotion and God will see them through. It is this point in the work when West starts talking about the lives and events of some real people and how they reached up to god for new direction and to guide them and West talks about how well things turned out for them. It is a book about hope and positive results when we are faithful through the fire and floods of life. I felt like I would enjoy this book because I have several of his albums. He writes from stories of real people shared with him and this is also his source of song lyrics in many instances. A lot of people will enjoy this book, it is small, brief and steps on 3 aspects of forgiveness. It is a descent book and if you are a fan of his you will likely enjoy this little book which is a collection of stories of sharing about how others have forgiven. I could see how some people might like the book.

Let Hope In 4 Choices That Will Change Your Life Forever By Pete Wilson

This is a must read book. Hurt people will hurt other people but freed people will free other people. How brilliant and simple did he put it!!! Wilson encourages us to turn back to the Bible and consider what they went through when they were up against a wall. We struggle and we forget what God can do; we give in to the devil when he whispers in our ear that we are doomed to failure. We believe the lies that we are alone and abandoned and in a world that we are not capable of succeeding within. But that is all a lie; we are children of God. We are loved and watched and God will come to the rescue every time we call on Him. Wilson also makes a point to let the reader know that it wont be a fast or easy process to heal our pains and let hop we in but he promises that it will be beneficial and well worth the efforts. I think he is a wonderful writer and this a book that will remain in my permanent collection. Pain that is not transformed becomes transferred to someone else. We must learn trust; trust in God and that he has a plan for us! Trust that we will be hurt in life and that is ok, just like a child will fall down and skin those knees! It will happen but we do not have to let it cripple our souls or stifle our souls! We must have hope! Hope is the great path to letting go of the shame and guilt of our past lives, of our short comings and failures. This is just a fantastic book. I found this to be a remarkable book, worthy of group study. I received a free copy of this book from the publisher through the booksneeze program in exchange for writing a review of the book. This is a five star book. Hope can change your life and make everything better. This writer pushes hope. I have rarely read a better book than this one. He outlines 4 steps or ways of looking into our situations to see the best possible end not the most likely. The writer does this by looking at some really bad situations in the Bible when it looked like it was curtains for Gods people but God brought them through their struggles and he will do the same for us. It is very hard to write a review without analysis of the 4 step plan used by the author to literally outline to process of developing hope and learning to give it time to work. Hope can can disarm guilt, shatter shame, and put your past behind you where it belongs. But you have to make the choice to let hope in. We serve a God who promises over and over again that anything is possible. Wilson, gives a look at the power of healing through hope, revealing 4 unique choices that have the potential to change your life forever. Let Hope In explores accounts in the Bible illustrating God’s ultimate plan for healing by letting hope fill the dark places.

NIV INtegrated Study Bible and chronlogical by Thomas Nelson Publishers



I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for writing a review. I enjoyed the chronological approach as it makes it easier to understand what is going on when the books are written. I got a more life like feeling; as if I were there watching the events happen first hand, like I was remembering something that I had seen happen, not like I was reading a book. The NIV language is easier to understand than the older King James editions. This book brings the Bible to life. It gives it a more complete picture of what was happening in the towns and villages and big cities when the events unfolded and came to life. I enjoyed reading Daniel and feel like I BETER CAN SEE HOW DANIEL AND HIS FRIENDS LIVED. I got the feeling like I was there and the book of Daniel made more sense to me. It will open you eyes because it is easier to understand what was going on when the books were written.  Passages of Scripture arranged in their sequential order, but so also are individual events, and includes multiple interpretations. This edition shows the Bible unfolding in a new way as the landmark events are set in parallel. It’s more than just a chronological Bible—not only are passages of Scripture arranged in their sequential order, but so also are individual events. And multiple interpretations allow for deeper revelations. For instance, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John’s telling of Jesus feeding the 5,000—presented in four columns right next to each other—take on a new life. David’s story about hiding from Saul in the wilderness is paired with the relevant psalms. Features include: •The entire text of the NIV translation with the order of events arranged chronologically •General and sectional (e.g., Pentateuch, History, Prophets, Gospels) introductions on chronology and dating, including comparative charts of major systems and schemes •Brief commentary in the form of transitions to help navigate the chronology